Means for removing sludge from boilers



Dec. 18, 1928.v 1,696,005

c. A. KOTHE MEANS FOR REMOVING SLUDGE FROM BOILERS Filed April. 28, 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 l 0/ bg/edo."

- 1: lfd/Ve B/ow Uff Cac/r Branc/1 F'pe zo frce u B/owo 5 Sie/f7 Dec. 18, 1928.

c. A. KOTHE MEANS Fon RnuovING sLUDGE Fnol Bomans Filed April 28, 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 III lllllllll:

Der; 1s, 192s. f 1,696,005

C. A. KOTHE MEANS Fon REuovING sLunGE Fnou oILEns Filed April 28, 1924 4 sheets-sheet 3 mxw&

/WVENTOR HTTWS Dec. 18, 1928. 1,696,05

c. A. KorHE MEANS FOR REMOVING SLUDGE FROM BOILERS Filed April 28, 1924 4 sheets-sheet 4 //v VEA/rol? (zw a fw/ f/g 7m; ad@ www@ Patented Dec. 18, 1928.

CHARLES A. K OTH, or MEADVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

MEANS FOR REMOV'ING SLUDGE FROll'I BOILERS.

Application filed April 2S, 1924. Serial No. 709,691.

The object of this invention is to provide an e'ective blow-off system for removing the sludge, foreign matter and concentrated solutions from vsteam boilers by means of the steam pressure within the boiler, thus obviating the necessity of frequently withdrawing the fire and Washino' out the boiler. My invention is particularly lwell adapted for locomotivesand boilers of locomotive type, Wherethere is a water leg in which the sludge and impurities, such as sand, mud, scale, etc., tend to' accumulate. The term sludge as used herein is. intended to include all such accumulation. j f

Inlocomotives water which needs a softeningtreatment, as for example, by he sodaashproc'ess' a large amount of sludge is'leposited'in the Water leg about the sides andenidsof the livebox. This sludge not only seriously interferes with the efiicieucy of the boiler," 'but unless care is taire-n for its .frequent dremoval, it will rise to a dangeronsheight, resu'ltingin injury to the lire box, sometimes causing explosion, Accordingly, it is customary to frequently blow-olf loeomotives, when deposit-ing such sludge, by means of ning a blow-oiln valve-just above the lmud ring and allowing the steam pressure to force outthe adiacent deposit. It has been demonstrated, however, that such method is not effective, because it operates only to remove the sludge immediately aio-und the entrance to the blow-off cook; for as soon as sullicient sludge is thus removed to provide a passageway, a water column is established from the top of the boiler, or directly from the water supply to the boiler, should the injector or pump be in use at `the time, and thus water alone, or with comparative] little .sediment in suspension, is thereafter dis charged. Accordingly, great mouruls olf sludge are left at the-i-nterx-uediate portions of water leg, and theonly feasible method heretofore used for removing this has becn'to Withdraw the fire and lWash out the leg with Water under pressure.

On the other hand, to torce a current of cold water from the supply through the wa,- ter spaces around the lire box and break up the sludge mound mentioned, while it might be effective in removing the sludge, it would be disastrous to the lire 'box sheets and tubes by suddenly cooling them.

I have developed a blow-oil system by which I can remove substantially the entire sludge as effectively as if such stream of Water under pressure were introduced and without danger to the fire box. A' my system, I force wat-er into the Water leg toward an open blow-oli' coclr and automatically heat such water in its passage, so that it carries the sludge aloneT the mud ring and out through the blow-oli' cock, and, at the same time, does not injure the i'i're box sheets. I accomplish th is by providing nozzles, located in the water leg and directed toward suitable blowfoff openings, which nozzles are adopted' to be connected with the main supply pipe and are arranged with restricted orifices to hold back the discharge, so that the water will take up heat from the steam, discharged by the in.- jector.

In addition to the heat, derived from the injector steam, (or as a substitute for it if a supply pump be used) some of the hot water from the water leis gathered up with the waterentering from the supply, by a peculiar sleeve construction about'tfhe nozzle orifice, so that a stream of hot water is shot along the mud ring, or a short distance .above it, toward the open blow-oli' cock. In this maza:- nei', I forcibly eject 'the sludge without dai'nage to the lire box.

I prefer to connect .the nozzles by three- Way cocks with the main snpply'pipe.' In ordinary running. these cocks shut ott the pines to the nozzles, leaving the supply pipe undisturbed; but, whenever it is .desired to blow-olii', it is only necessary to give thethreeway coc-lr a quarter turn to direct .the incoming flow to the nozzle, and to open the correspondin; blouhoi cock, which emits the sludge projected b v the stream through that nozzle. lt' iles-aired, the valve and cocks may be operated. by suitable links mul levers, 'from the cab ol the locomotive.

The d rau'ings illustrate my invention, both diagrammatically and in an improved cmbodiment for one type of locomotive boiler, but it should be understood that I do not intend lo limit myself to theparticula-.r embodiment or type of boiler shown. My invention is more fully described in connection with these drawings and its essential characteristics are summarized in the claims.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a. somewhat diagrainnnatic side eleva-tion of a portion of a boiler of a locomotive type, equipped with my blow-oli apparatus. Fig. 2, is a horizon tal section ther-.corn through the Walter leg; the installation here shown, comprising of one double discharge nozzle and a single broken away. Fig. 8 is-a perspective of one of the elbow nozzles, employed in the embodiment of Fig. 3. Fig; 9 is a side elevation of a portion of the water leg, showing such nozzleA attached. Fig. 10 is a horizontal section vthrough fsuch nozzle. Fig. 1l is a vertical section onta larger scale across the discharge portion of a nozzle shown in' Fig. 10, in the region indicated -by the .line 11-11 on that figure.

Referring lirstxto the simpler embodiment ofFigs. land 2,10 indicates the sides of the boiler, 11 the roof thereof, 12 the back, 13 the throat. The sides of the fire box are designated at 20, the crownsheet 21, the back 22 and the throat 23. lThe sides, back and throat sheets of the boiler are connected with-the corresponding sheets of the lire box by the quadrangular mud ring 30.

'Figs-1 land 2 show a. double nozzle 40, lying in the l`water. leg between the back sheets l2 and 22 and projecting in opposite directions. This nozzle has restricted orifices as hereinafter described, surrounded' by sleeves 4l, supported by a nozzle, but spaced at intervals from it. The double nozzle is in communication with a pipe 50, leading to a three-way cock 5l on a main feed Water line 60, which leads from the tender or other source of supply (not shown) and is provided with suitable means for forcing the water into the boiler, as for instance, the injector 6l. rl`he blow-oil' cock, designated at 70, may be of any usual type, and, in this instance, is located in an intermediate region at the throat of the water leg.

Mounds of sludge, such as indicated at A, in Figs. 4, 5, and 6, may accumniulate in the water leg` Now, with the ordinary blow-oli' system, if the cock were open, only the sludge immediately adjacent thereto, would be removed. In my system, however, when the cock 70 is opened and the three-way valve 51 turned to cause the injected water to enter the nozzle 40, streams of water are projected forcibly from the nozzle, around two sides of the water leg just above the mud ring and mechanically carry the sludge along, dis charging it through the blow-ofi' cock. The restriction of the nozzle holds back the flow from the injector proper', so that more of the injector steam is condensed and thus heats the water before it reaches the nozzle, and, at the same time, the contracted sleeve 41 allows hot water in the leg to be picked up by the injected water and carried with it, thus augmenting the heat Yof such injected water. This nozzle action will be moreapparent from the description hereinafter given of the preferred nozzle, as illustrated for example in Figs. S and 10.

Referringinow toY Figs. 3 to 11 inclusive, the boiler shell, fire box and mud ring are designated by the same numeralsv as hereto-Y fore used. 1n this instance, however, I have iounted a number of nozzles, each connected by a three-way valve with the main feed pipe from an injector' notl shown. Thus in the water leg, is a nozzle 42 at the side adjacent he back of the boiler and projecting forward ly; a nozzle 43` at the opposite side, adjacent the throat, and projecting toward the back of the boiler, and beneath the llues'35,.anoz zle 44 projecting toward the firebox.` VFor each of these nozzlesI provide, in this embodiment, a corresponding blow-off cock, namely, the blow-off cock 72, adjacentzthe throat for the sludge from the nozzle 42, a blow-oft1 cock 73, adjacent the back for the sludge from the nozzle 43, and a blow-olf cock '74 under the shell for the discharge noz-l zle 44.

I have shown the blow-off cocks 7 2 and 74 connected by branches to a discharge pipe 75, and the blow-olf cock 73 coupled to a ;dis-y charge pipe 76. Suitable links and levers 77 78 and '79, leading to convenient points, pro vide for the ready opening of the blow-0H cocks Whenever desired. The nozzles 42 and 44 are shown as connected respectivelyiwith the three-way valves 52 and 54 in the main supply pipe 60 shown, while the nozzle 43 is connected with the three-way valve 53 in the corresponding supply pipe on the opposite side of the locomotive. The valves 52 and 53 are shown as provided with levers and pull rods 5G and 57 for their ready operation from the cab; the valve 54 is shown having simply a handle 58.

{eier-ring now particularly to Figs. 8 lo 1l inclusive, the nozzle there shown, comprises an elbow 8O of gradually reduced bore from its entrance S1 to its primary discharge oritice 82. The shank of the elbow is provided with an external enlargement 83 which is conical or spherical and thus may readilyv seat in ay corresponding opening in the boiler wall 10 as indicated in Fig. 10. Such nozzle may beheld firmly in place by a plate 90, surrounding the shank of the nozzle and drawn toward the boiler wall'by nuts 91 on studs 92. The shank of the nozzle is of non-circular form (provided preferably by t-he lugs 85) which by occupying a corresponding opening in the plate prevents the nozzle from turning when in place.

The construction at the discharge end of the nozzle is an important factor as shown in Figs. 8, l0, and l1.4 A sleeve 8G surrounds llo the critic-'e 8'2 aniiisinteifnauy restricted at '87 nd then iiare'sfto theiinaioriiiee. Suitabre epening's 88 extend 'in the generati direction fitre flew abeiit'thepoint Aof the nozzle and Vintotliejsleev'e-. vThe nozzle and sleeve are preferably oneflfiteg'al casting and the opningfSS are made th'roil h the junctionportien rif-'the' two.Y Tiiehig i veleeity if "the injected water wilt'caus'the pressure 'within' the s'ieeveeiiid adjacent me' openings 88 te be less than the boiler pressure, and thus boil'er water ,will beldrawnin through these openings, for'xihga eilveiopbof hot water about the injected stream of feed water.

It will be noted that the opening through the boiler wall, occupied by the annular shoulder 83 on the nozzle, is of greater diameter than any portion of the nozzle or sleeve within the water leg. Accordingly, the nozzle may be readily inserted from the outside and may be tightly held in place by simply employing the plate 90 and the studs and nuts. The removal of these parts allows the removal of the nozzle for purposes ot' inspection and cleaning.

At all the points of projecting the nozzles through the boiler space, the usual check valves such as indicated at 92 are provided as required by law. The points of discharge are controlled by blow ofi' cocks 72, 7 3 and 74, as described meeting the necessary requirements.

It will be seen that my blow-ofi' system requires very little additional mechanism and may be readily applied to existing boilers. The nozzles operate to enable forcible streams ot' hot water to be shot along the mud ring, and experience has demonstrated that such operation effectively removes the sludge. I

am thus enabled to increase the efiiciency of the boiler operation by keeping the boiler leg clean, and' reduce the expense of maintenance by very greatly lengthening the periods between washings.

1 claim:

l. The method of removing sludge from boilers under pressure comprising heating a stream of water by passing it through a. conduit disposed within the boiler, injecting the stream into a surrounding envelope of hot boiler water before releasing it from said conduit and then projecting the stream with its envelope into the region of the sludge and toward an open blow-ofi' cock while the stream is heated sufficiently to not injure the hot boiler sheets.

2. A method of removing sludge from boilers comprising forcing water into a heat transmitting conduit in heat exchange relation with the hot boiler water and heating the conduit water thereby, injecting the conduit water into a surrounding envelope of hot boiler water before discharging it from the conduit and projecting the hot mixture at the sludge in the direction of af blow-off cock.

s. veri-mitination er @retirer-and e en bul'ar elbow passing through the" wall thereof, a: sleeve on the 'euries entrai :said elbow and proviiiedv with passageways communicating with the exterior ofsaid elbow and the eiiaaneitlierein,im annular shoulder on the elbow shank on-the outer face of the wall, a plate `ein'loricing the shank and bearing against the-shoulder, and means for drawing the plate 'toward the-boilerwall to' clamp said shoulder against'the walk-the hole'thfough the wall having a greater diameter than the external diameter of the sleeve or the elbow between the sleeve and the shoulder.

4. In combination with a boiler having a water leg, a blow-off conduit leading from the water leg, an elbow nozzle having an outlet directed toward said conduit and having means for securing the shank of the elbow to the outer wall, said means comprising an annular shoulder on the shank, a plate embracing the sha-nk and bearing against the shoulder, means for drawing the plate toward the wall to clamp said shoulder against the wall, said means preventing rotation of the plate and said plate and said shank having non-circular interengaging portions whereby the plate prevents the turning of the elbow and maintains it pointing in the direction of the blow-ofi' conduit.

5. The combination with a boiler having a blow-off cock, of an elbow for use in a sludge removing installation having means whereby it may be held in the water space of the boiler, said elbow having a reduced orifice, an integral'sleeve surrounding the orifice, there being openings in the general direction of flow but toward the orifice axis through the region between the exterior of the orifice and the interior of the sleeve, said elbow and said sleeve being removable from the boiler through the opening in which the elbow is positioned.

The means for removing sludge from boilers comprising the combination with a blow-ofi' cock of a. nozzle including in part a conduit disposed within the boiler, said nozzle being located some distance from and directed toward the blow-oiin cock and being connected with a feed water delivery pipe and having means for forming within the nozzle an envelope of hot boiler water about the injected stream of feed water, whereby the water discharged from the nozzle is heated previous to its discharge.

7. A method of removing sludge from boilers comprising forcing the water into the boiler by means of a steam injector, thereby heating the water by the injector steam, conducting the heated water into the water space of the boiler through a heat transmitting conduit disposed in said space, thereby further f heating the Water, creating an envelope of hot locity at the sludge and toward e blow-off cock.` A

8.The.combination with a boiler, of a blow-off cock connectedC thereto, anelbow eX- tending through the boiler lshell v:and having afnozzle in the-water spaee. directed toward the blow-off cock, the .nozzle having a reduced orifice and having a, sleeve surrounding its orifice and spaced therefrom. Witli'entrance passageways between' them., 'the sleeve hav ingits bore graduzillylrestricted andthen ilaringv towaidits orifice, and an external-Harige on the elbowv coast-ing with an opening in the shell of greater size than the exterior of the nozzle and "sleeve, whereby vseid nozzle and sleeve `are removable :as a. unit'tlirough the opening in the boiler'well. f f ,In l l In testimony wliereofrl'fliereunto ailix my signature.

CHABLESAQ 

